Bishops of the Diocese of North Carolina Respond to Shooting in Alabama
“Lord, we have called upon you daily;
We have stretched out our hands to you.
Do you work wonders for the dead?
will those who have died stand up to give you thanks?
Will your loving kindness be declared in the grave?
your faithfulness in the land of destruction?
Will your wonders be known in the dark?
or your righteousness in the country where all is forgotten?
…O Lord, we cry to you for help …”
– Psalm 88 Domine, Deus (Book of Common Prayer, p. 712)
Beloved in Christ,
“We lift up our hearts to the Lord.” Broken hearts. Heavy hearts. Hearts aching, yet again, after another eruption of gun violence, this time at one of our own houses of worship, a place of safety and sanctuary shattered by the shots fired at a community supper. Two more lives have been lost and another person injured. It is particularly painful that we write this on the seventh anniversary of the shooting at Mother Emanuel Church in Charleston, South Carolina, where nine people were martyred at a Bible study on June 17, 2015.
Anytime violence happens anywhere, at a church or other house of worship, a school, a grocery store, a concert, we feel the pain, the horror and the outrage in a deep and personal way. We stand in compassion and shared grief with the people of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, even as we continue to be grieved by an almost daily drumbeat of gun violence that is unfolding with increasing frequency, an alarming and consistent threat to personal and public safety.
Our fixation, some would call it an obsession, with violence, and with firearms in particular, is antithetical to the people we are called to be. These losses do not demonstrate responsible gun ownership; they are evidence of a plague – a public health crisis in this country. It is as if protecting an idolatrous interpretation of the Second Amendment outweighs the continuing cost of human lives. In the words of Psalm 88, “Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?”
It is understandable that some feel the needed changes aren’t even possible due to forces deeply entrenched in the way we are governed, but that is when and why we must lean into our faith most deeply and draw from it the strength and the vision to be advocates in ways that will put us on a path to peace. Prayers are necessary, and our prayers at this time propel us to action, to advocacy and to the invitation to become instruments of God’s peace. This is the way we live into our vocation to become beloved community. It is especially in the face of violence that we must become instruments of God’s peace.
We cannot not allow the volume and frequency of these events to leave us feeling numb and powerless. Mass shootings are only one manifestation of this crisis. This scourge of violence includes guns used in acts of domestic violence, suicide, small disagreements that escalate exponentially because one or more of those involved is armed, guns that are improperly stored and fall into the hands of children who then accidentally harm themselves or others. Such everyday occurrences have made shocking acts of violence seem ordinary. We need to remind ourselves that these are not ordinary nor inevitable. They are tragic and often preventable. And part of the tragedy of this plague of violence is our seeming inability to prevent them.
In this Season of Pentecost, in some circles called ordinary time, as your bishops, we are aware that the heart of the season is the breaking forth of the power of the Holy Spirit, not only in the church, but in the public square. There is very little that should feel ordinary about this time or about the challenges we are facing. But our prayer to be instruments of God’s peace is an invitation to open our hearts again to the movement of the Holy Spirit as advocate, as truth-teller, as holy disrupter of that which has become “ordinary.” The coming of Pentecost is a call to awaken us to the power of God to accomplish that which we find impossible.
The violence has to stop.
This is not a political statement. It is not a partisan position or opinion. It is a Pentecost proclamation. It is the gospel truth we know in our hearts and the Holy Spirit is calling us to proclaim. The killing has to stop. And we must do our part to stop it.
It is time to step outside our comfort zone. It is time to put our thoughts and prayers into action. It is time to bear witness in the public square that our country’s tolerance of inaction to this violence is itself a form of collusion with such violence. This is our call as followers of Jesus. This is what it means to become a disciple, making a difference.
We promised recently that a group would be formed to address this epidemic; we will be meeting with them this coming week. We will take action in a number of ways that will include advocating for gun legislation around age limits for gun ownership, background checks and restrictions for certain automatic weapons designed for militaristic purposes. We will also continue to work for mental health support and for programs that help those who suffer from mental illness to have access and resources for the treatment they need and deserve. Having a mental illness or behavioral health challenge by no means equates to a propensity for violence; however, improving access to and the quality of mental health services for everyone is one component of reducing the chances of situational escalations that could become dangerous.
As followers of Jesus, we believe all our action is formed and shaped by our prayer. And so we close with this prayer:
“Lord make us instruments of your peace.” Empower us to find ways to advocate, to comfort and to stand with others in their pain and grief. Give us the courage and will to persevere until we have brought about the change that you call us to accomplish and realize, the dream that you promise for all your children: the protection and safety of every member of your beloved community. Help us to discern, decide and then act. Give us wisdom for our efforts and patience on this path. And give us the grace to trust that your Holy Spirit will continue to lead us and guide us, even in the most heart-breaking and harrowing moments, to the peace that passes all our understanding. All this we ask in the name of Jesus, who shows the way of love. Amen.
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